Disney XD has acquired the U.S. broadcast rights for DQ Entertainment’s 3D animated series The Jungle Book.
The 26 x 22 mins. series will debut June 11 on the channel, which reaches more than 78 million households. Based on the classic stories by English author Rudyard Kipling, The Jungle Book series is aimed at ages 6-9 and follows man-cub Mowgli, Baloo, Bagheera and Kaa as they take on the evil Shere Khan.
Disney previously adapted Kipling’s material into a 1967 animated feature.
SMC Entertainment, a division of Sun-Mate, has the television, home video, licensing and merchandising rights in North America for The Jungle Book based on an earlier agreement with DQE, based in India.
“Mowgli and his friends have found their rightful home and we are confident that they will continue to enthrall audiences in their new CGI avatars,” said Tapaas Chakravarti, chairman and CEO of DQE.
Why though? Why wouldn’t Disney just do something in house with the existing Disney “Jungle Book” franchise?